Textile finishing process using a chlorinated hydrocarbon as the reactant solvent

ABSTRACT

Crease-resistance and easy-care properties of textile materials containing at least 20 percent by weight of cellulosic material are improved by impregnating the textile material with a solution or dispersion in a halogenated hydrocarbon solvent of a resin precondensate and an acid catalyst therefor, then subjecting the impregnated material to the action of hot water or steam and finally heating.

D United States Patent 1 13,617,195

[72] Inventors James Al r t/ [50] Field of Search 260/3 3.8; Manchester; 8/1 16.3

Alexander Parkinson, Manchester; James William Roberts, Manchester; Brian References Clted Crosbie Fielding, Runcorn, all of England UNITED STATES PATENTS 1 PP No. 739,212 3.l83,282 5/1965 Hurwitz 1. 260/33.8 :lled 2 33? 3.473.175 10/1969 Sieber 8/142 atente 0v. [73] Assignee Imperial Chemical Industries Limited FOREIGN PATENTS London, England 1,174,859 3/1959 France 8/1163 [32'] Priority June 26,1967 OTHER REFERENCES Great Hofstetter, Melliand Textilberichto March, 1969, pp. 321- [3 l] 29424/67 334 Primary Examiner-George F. Lesmes Assistant Examinerl Cannon 54 TEXTILE FINISHING PROCESS USING A AmmHi1-CuShmflm Darby & Cushmafl CHLORINATED HYDROCARBON AS THE REACZTANT SOLVENT ABSTRACT: Crease-resistance and easy-care properties of 13 Claims, No Drawings text1le matenals containing at least 20 percent by weight of {52] U.S.Cl 8/1163, cellulosic material are improved by impregnating the textile ,2/2 15.6' /115], 8/1162, material with a solution or dispersion in a halogenated 117/1394. l17/l6l. 260/33-8 hydrocarbon solvent of a resin precondensate and an acid [51] Int. Cl ..D06ml3/08, catalyst therefor. then subjecting the impregnated material to D06m 13/40, C08g 51/30 the action ofhot water or steam and finally heating.

7 material, whereby the crease-resistance and easy-care properties of the textilematerials are improved.

According to the present invention there is provided a process for thetreatment of textile materials containing at least 20 percent by weight of cellulosic material which comprises impregnating the said textile material with a solution or dispersion in a halogenated hydrocarbon solvent of a resin precondensate as hereinafter defined which reacts under acid conditions, together with a catalyst which is an acid or an acidgenerating substance, immediately thereafter subjecting the textile material so impregnated to the action of hot water or steam and thereafter heating the textile material.

By a resin precondensate is meant an initial stagecondensation product of formaldehyde with a nitrogen-containing compound, which is capable of reacting with itself under acid conditions to give a fully cured resin and/or is also capable of reacting with the hydroxyl groups present in the cellulosic textile material. Resin precondensates suitable for use inthe process of the invention include the initial stage condensation products of formaldehyde with urea, thiourea, dicyandiamide, amides, carbamates, aminotriazines, urons, ureins, ureides, imidazolidinones, pyrimidinones and triazinones, especially the methylol derivatives of such compounds and their lower alkyl ethers. Preferred resin precondensates are the alkyl ethers of the aforesaid methylol compounds in which the alkyl groups contain from one to four carbon atoms. Particular examples of such preferred resin precondensates include methoxymethylurea, polymethoxymethylmelamine, 1,3- dimethoxymethyl-4,5-dihydroxy-imidazolidin-Z-one and 1,3- dimethoxymethyl-hexahydropyrimidin-Z-one.

Halogenated hydrocarbon solvents which may be employed in the process of the invention include any of the commercially available halogenated hydrocarbons; it is preferable that the solvent should be sufficiently volatile to be capable of being rapidly removed from thetextile material on treatment with hot water or steam. Particularly suitable solvents are chlorinated and chlorofluorinated hydrocarbon solvents, for example trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene and l:l:ltrichloroethane.

As catalysts there are used in the process of the invention substances which are themselves acid or which generate acid I under the conditions of the process, the said substances being soluble in the halogenated hydrocarbon solvent. Suitable solvent-soluble acids include, for example, monochloracetic acid, dodecylbenzene sulphonic acid and 2,2-bis(hydroxymethyl) butylphosphonic acid; suitable solvent-soluble acidgenerating compounds include, for example, esters such as methyl p-toluene-sulphonate and quaternary ammonium salts such as cetyl pyridinium bromide and stearamidomethylpyridinium chloride.

The reactive components which are to be applied,to the cellulosic textile material according to the process of the invention, that is to say, the resin precondensate and the acid catalyst, are initially dissolved or dispersed in the halogenated hydrocarbon solvent, and the resulting solution or dispersion is applied to the textile material by any of the known methods, such as impregnating, coating or spraying. The textile material may then be'squeezed, if desired. to remove any excess of they solution. The textile material so treated is then immediately conducted either into a vessel of hot water or into a chamber containing an atmosphere of steam. in the case where hot water is employed, the water is conveniently maintained at a temperature of from 80 C. to 100 C. and the textile material is allowed to remain in contact with the hot water for a period of from secs. to 60 secs. It is, however, preferred to subject the textile material to which the solution has been applied to the action of a steamatmosphere. The steam is preferably at atmospheric pressure, so that the textile material attains a temperature of from 80 C. to 100 C., but superheated steam under pressure may be employed if higher temperatures are desired. The textile material is preferably maintained in contact with the steam atmosphere for a period of from 5 secs. to 60 secs. The steam treatment may conveniently be carried out in a steam chamber such as that described in British Pat. specification No. 916,338 or that described in our copending 7 application No. 42620/66.

After the treatment with hot water or steam, the textile material is heated in order to bring about the necessary curing of the resin precondensate under the influence of the acid catalyst. The heating operation may be carried out'within a wide range of temperatures, but it is preferred to heat the textile material at a temperature within the range 120 C. to 200 C. The duration of the heating may vary between 10 seconds and minutes, but is preferably between 1 and 5 minutes; normally thehigher the temperature which is employed, the shorter is the heating time necessary. The heating operation may if desired be preceded by a drying step in which the textile material is heated at a lower temperature, for example in the range 50 C. to 120 C. Alternatively, the heating operation may optionally be deferred until'after the textile material has been made up into a garment. The resin-treated textile material may optionally also be subjected to a mild washing treatment to remove residual formaldehyde and/or acid.

Thetreatment of the textile material with hot water or steam immediately following the application of the solution of the resin precondensate and the acid catalyst is an essential part of the process of the invention. Not only does this treatment serve to remove the halogenated hydrocarbon solvent by violatilisation, but it also brings about an unexpected enhancement of the desirable properties of the textile material which are conferred by.the process. if the halogenated hydrocarbon solventis removed from the textile material by the application of dry heat, the-beneficial effects of the treatment are very muchdiminished.

T he concentration of the resin precondensate in the solution which is applied to the textile material may be varied within wide limits, but in general a concentration of from 3 percent to 20 percent by weight of the solution ispreferred. The amount of the acid catalyst present in the solution is normally from 5 percent to 20 percent of the weight of the resin precondensate.

The amount of the resin precondensate which is applied to the textile material by the process of the invention may be varied accordingto the magnitude of the treatmenteffect which it is desired to achieve, but in general an amount, of from 2.5 percent to 15 percent of the dry weight of the textile material is preferred.

The process of the invention may with advantage be carried out in such away that the halogenated hydrocarbon solvent is recovered for reuseafter its removal from the textile material by hot water or steam. in the case where hot water is employed for. removal of the solvent, a solvent recovery system such as' that described in British Pat. specificationNo.

812,894 may be used. When the solvent is removed by the preferred method of treating with steam, the solvent may conveniently be recovered in conventional manner, for example by condensation of the vapors by meansof a condenser positioned inside. or outside the flash-off vessel, the condensate being passed to a water separator to remove water from the liquid solvent, as described, for example, in our copending application No. 4 2620/66. lnthis way loss-of solvent va or tothe atmosphere can be obviated, and the resulting liquid solvent can be reusedin the treatment of further textile material.

Cellulosic textilematerials which may be treated according .to the process'of the invention include fibers, yarns and fabrics containing at least 20 percent by weight of cellulosic material,

It is preferred .to treat such textile materials which are composed wholly of cellulose, for example, cotton, viscose rayon (including rayon made from polynosiefibersland linen. The process may, however, be applied to textile-materials which are blends of cellulosic material with a noncellulosic material,

for example a synthetic polymeric material such as a polyester, such blends containing at least 20 percent by weight, and desirably 50 percent by weight, of cellulosic material. Treatment of such textile materials by the process of the invention results in a substantial improvement in the crease-resistance and easy-care properties of the materials.

There may be added to the solution in the halogenated hydrocarbon solvent of the resin precondensate and the acid catalyst as hereinbefore defined other textile treatment agents of known type which are soluble in the said solvent. Such other treatment agents include lubricants and softeners, for example low molecular weight polyethylene waxes, water repellent agents. for example slllcones. methylolstearamide and steurumldomethyl pyridinium chloride. and stiffening agents. for example polyvinyl acetate.

The invention is illustrated but not limited by the following Examples, in which parts and percentages are by weight:

EXAMPLE l A mercerized cotton poplin fabric is impregnated in a solution of 6.2 parts of polymethoxymethylmelamine, prepared as described below, and 0.6 part of monochloracetic acid in 93 parts of trichloroethylene. The fabric is then passed through squeeze rollers at such a pressure that the amount of trichlorethylene solution retained by the fabric is 65 percent of its dry weight. It is attached to a frame and immersed in a steam chamber at 95 C. for 30 seconds in order to remove the solvent. The fabric is then heated at l50-l55 C. for 3 minutes.

The resulting fabric is found to possess good crease resistance (when measured by British Standard Method of Test 8.5. 3086:l959)-and superior smooth-drying performance to the untreated cotton. This improvement is illustrated by the following crease recovery figures:

Untreated Treated fabric fabric Crease recovery angle 174 268 (warp weft) if the process is carried out by removing the ash, the crease recovery figures obtained are as follows:

Untreated Treated fabric fabric Crease recovery angle l7l 265 (warp weft) The finish is therefore durable to the above washing treatment.

The solvent-soluble polymethoxymethylmelamine used in the above treatment is prepared as follows:

126 Parts of melamine are added to 412 parts of a 51 percent w/w methanolic formaldehyde solution which have been basified by the addition of 7.2 parts of 47 percent w/w aqueous caustic soda solution. The mixture is stirred and heated to reflux temperature, the mixture then being refluxed for onehalf hour. The mixture is cooled to room temperature, 191 parts of methanol and 52 parts of concentrated hydrochloric acid are added, and the mixture is stirred at 25-30 C. during 1V2 hours. The solution is basified to pH 7.8 by the addition of 40 parts of anhydrous sodium carbonate and the mixture is filtered from precipitated salts. The clear filtrate is evaporated under reduced pressure, the final conditions being 1 hour at 90 C. and mm. mercury pressure. The product is filtered hot from a further small amount of precipitated salts, yielding a clear viscous liquid product which is readily soluble in halogenated hydrocarbon solvents.

EXAMPLE 2 A mercerized cotton poplin fabric is impregnated with a solution containing 6.2 parts of methoxymethylurea, prepared as described below, and 0.77 part of stearamidomethyl pyridinium chloride in 93 parts of trichloroethylene. The fabric is squeezed through a pad mangle so that the amount of solution it retains is 65 percent of its own weight. The solvent is then removed from the fabric by attaching the fabric to a frame and immersing the frame in a steam chamber at 95 C. for 30 seconds. The fabric is finally heated at C. for 3 minutes.

The treated cotton is found to possess a crease recovery angle warp-i-weft) of 223, while that of the untreated is .1 36.

The solvent-soluble methoxymethylurea used in the above treatment is prepared as follows:

180 Parts of urea are added to 794 parts of5l percent w/w methanolic formaldehyde solution which have been basified by the addition of 10.8 parts of 47 percent w/w aqueous caustic soda solution. The solution is stirred at 60-65 C. during 3 hours and cooled to room temperature. The solution is acidified to pH 2 by the addition of about 10 parts of concentrated hydrochloric acid, the solution then being stirred at 25-30 C. during 2 hours. The solution is basified to pH 9.5

by the addition of about nine parts of 47 percent aqueous caustic soda solution and is then evaporated under reduced pressure, the final conditions being 1 hour at 90 C. and 15 mm. mercury pressure. The product is filtered from a small amount of precipitated salts, yielding a clear liquid product whi his as i xsql l n,hdqsqnstsslhxs qs r qnso e t What we claim is:

1. A process for the treatment of textile materials containing at least 20 percent by weight of cellulosic material which comprises the steps of (a) impregnating the said textile material with a liquor comprising (i) a halogenated aliphatic hydrocarbon solvent, (ii) a resin precondensate which is an initial stage condensation product of formaldehyde with a compound containing the grouping where X is oxygen, sulphur or an imino group and which is capable of reacting with itself under acid conditions to give a fully cured resin and/or is capable of reacting with the hydroxyl group present in the said cellulosic material, and (iii) a catalyst for the said resin precondensate selected from acids and acid-generating substances, (b) immediately after the said impregnation treating the textile material with an aqueous agent selected from hot water and steam, and (c) thereafter heating the textile material at 120 to 200 C. for a period of from 10 seconds to 30 minutes.

2. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the resin precondensate is an alkyl ether of a methylol derivative selected from the methylol derivatives of urea, thiourea, dicyandiamide, an amide, a carbamate, an aminotriazine, a uron, a urein, a ureide, an imidazolidimone, a pyrimidinone and a triazinone the alkyl group of the alkyl ether containing from one to four carbon atoms.

3. A process as claimed in claim 2, wherein the resin precondensate is selected from methoxymethylurea, polymethoxy-methylmelamine, l,3-dimethoxymethyl-4,5- dihydroxy-imidazolidin-Z-one and l,3-dimethoxymethyl-hexahydropyrimidin-Z-one.

4. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the halogenated hydrocarbon solvent is selected from trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene and 1,1 ;l-trichloroethane.

5. A process as claimed in claim I, wherein the catalyst is an acid selected from monochloroacetic acid, dodecylbenzenesulphonic acid and 2,Z-(bishydroxmethyU-butylphosphonic acid.

6. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the catalyst is an acid-generating substance selected from methyl ptoluene sulphonate, cetyl pyridinium bromide and stearamidomethylpyridinium chloride.

7. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the textile material is treated. after said impregnation, with water at a temperature of from 80 to 100 C. for a period of from 5 secs. to 60 secs.

8. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the textile material is treated, after impregnation, with steam at atmospheric pressure, so that the textile material attains a temperature of from 80 to 100 C. for a period of from 5 secs. to 60 secs.

9. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the textile material is heated for a period of from i to 5 minutes.

10. A process as claimed in claim L'Wherein the concentration of the resin precondensate in the treatment liquor which is applied to the textile material is from 3 percent to 20 percent by weight of the liquor.

11. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the amount of catalyst present in the treatment liquor is from 5 percent to 20 

2. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the resin precondensate is an alkyl ether of a methylol derivative selected from the methylol derivatives of urea, thiourea, dicyandiamide, an amide, a carbamate, an aminotriazine, a uron, a urein, a ureide, an imidazolidimone, a pyrimidinone and a triazinone the alkyl group of the alkyl ether containing from one to four carbon atoms.
 3. A process as claimed in claim 2, wherein the resin precondensate is selected from methoxymethylurea, polymethoxy-methylmelamine, 1,3-dimethoxymethyl-4,5-dihydroxy-imidazolidin-2-one and 1,3-dimethoxymethyl-hexahydropyrimidin-2-one.
 4. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the halogenated hydrocarbon solvent is selected from trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene and 1;1;1-trichloroethane.
 5. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the catalyst is an acid selected from monochloroacetic acid, dodecylbenzenesulphonic acid and 2,2-(bishydroxmethyl)-butylphosphonic acid.
 6. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the catalyst is an acid-generating substance selected from methyl p-toluene sulphonate, cetyl pyridinium bromide and stearamidomethylpyridinium chloride.
 7. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the textile material is treated, after said impregnation, with water at a temperature of from 80* to 100* C. for a period of from 5 secs. to 60 secs.
 8. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the textile material is treated, after impregnation, with steam at atmospheric pressure, so that the textile material attains a temperature of from 80* to 100 * C. for a period of from 5 secs. to 60 secs.
 9. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the textile material is heated for a period of from 1 to 5 minutes.
 10. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the concentration of the resin precondensate in the treatment liquor which is applied to the textile material is from 3 percent to 20 percent by weight of the liquor.
 11. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the amount of catalyst present in the treatment liquor is from 5 percent to 20 percent of the weight of the resin precondensate.
 12. A process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the amount of the resin precondensate which is applied to the textile material is from 2.5 percent to 15 percent of the dry weight of the textile material.
 13. A textile material treated by a process as claimed in claim 